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Toads crossing 2019

Toads crossing 2019

The toad breeding season has begun for 2019 with the first sighting of breeding toads spotted on the 16th January, 2 days earlier than last year. It was spotted in St Brelade parish in the same pond as last year.

Toads (Bufo spinosus) will now be migrating to pond sites around the island to breed, which for some may involve crossing roads. Please slow down when driving through the lanes at night and watch for toads. If you walk your dog a night you can help these creatures get safely across by moving them towards the direction they are traveling to. There is no need to move the toads any further than this as they will reach their destination at their own pace. Please be mindful of your own safety when doing this at night and make sure you are visible to traffic. If you are worried about toads crossing roads you can print off our warning poster to advise drivers to slow down.

Check your pond at school, work and home for toads breeding and spawn sightings will be on their way soon. Toad spawn looks like a long string of jelly with black dots inside. As the spawn gets older algae can sometimes cover it making it difficult to spot. Last year the first toad spawn sighting was 25th January so we are looking out to see who will be the first to spot the spawn for 2019.

At the Jersey Biodiversity Centre we would love to hear from you if you’ve spotted toads at various stages of their life cycle.

You can do this by entering a record to our website at www.jerseybiodiversitycentre.org.je/records/enter-casual.

On this website you can add photos to your record to give us more information of what it is you’ve spotted.
We use this information to map where on the islands toads are breeding so we can protect these spaces for years to come. We also can see where toads are moving and if they are spotted on roads we will inform The Jersey Amphibian and Reptile Group who conduct night time walks to help the amphibians cross the roads as well as conducting toad surveys around the island.